


the twelve days of christmas

by niallhoranbitches



Category: One Direction (Band), Zayn Malik (Musician)
Genre: Christmas, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, but... you'd figure it out anyway, hopefully i'll manage to do it as i want to, i'm giving up so much in this tags lmao, not-famous au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-14
Updated: 2018-01-08
Packaged: 2019-02-14 20:13:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13015293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/niallhoranbitches/pseuds/niallhoranbitches
Summary: supposedly, december was a time of peace, getting some well-deserved rest and spending time with family. for zayn it was also the time of his mum's not-so-subtle worries that made him do crazy things. as a result of which, he came up with some unexpected conclusions.





	1. on the first day of christmas my true love sent to me... a message in the snow

**Author's Note:**

> i've always wanted to do a series of christmas prompts and i'm quite motivated to do so this year. keep your fingers crossed for me to succeed. if everything goes well, i'll present you a 12-piece, festive fic. very short pieces. so... fingers crossed.  
> i'd like to thank @zee-gee on tumblr for giving me two little prompts that kind of guided me in the right direction ;') hopefully, you'll like it <3

It wasn’t really common to see snow in England, especially in the early December. Zayn couldn’t remember when they had had a proper, white Christmas. Yesterday’s evening, though, the thick, fluffy snowflakes were falling down quite densely, but Zayn had a little hope it will last till the morning let alone the Christmas Day.

However, when he woke up the next day, the light making its way into Zayn’s room between his undrawn curtains was a bit too bright for an usual morning. Crinkling his eyes, Zayn glanced through the window. From his spot on the bed, the only thing Zayn was able to see was the tip of the three, growing on the other side of the street. That was enough to notice that its top branches were covered in a thin layer of snow.

A small smile appeared on Zayn’s face as he got up off the bed and walked towards the window, wrapping the duvet around himself. He might be 23 now, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t get excited about the first snow.

The whole neighbourhood was covered in an half-inch blanket of white fluff. It looked beautiful, especially here, within a few miles from the city centre. In the heart of London, people had been going completely mad and the whole life resolved into chaos, probably. Zayn was very happy he had his weekends off.

Leaning against the window frame, Zayn was staring outside absently, until he caught some movement with the corner of his eye. Precisely, on the tiny lawn in front of his house.

When he glanced there, he’d only seen a mop of ruffled, dark hair with bleached tips, disappearing inside the building. Zayn was about to walk away from the window and meet Niall in the kitchen, but before he could do that, something else drew his attention. A laugh escaped his mouth when he’d realised what it was.

On said tiny lawn, drawn with a stick or something similar, were a bunch of sloppy letters that spelled “Vas happenin’, Z? x”. Shaking his head, a big smile still on his face, Zayn left his room. He wandered barefoot towards the kitchen as he heard the front door closing.

“I’m chillin’,” Zayn answered, watching as Niall took off his jacket and shoes by the door.

Niall’s head snapped up and he looked at Zayn, clearly surprised the latter was already up. Quickly enough that expression was changed into a huge grin.

“Quite literally, I see,” Niall chuckled, pointing his chin at the duvet-cape Zayn was still wrapped in. “You could just get dressed, you know?”

“Just woken up,” Zayn said and yawned as if to confirm his words. “Where have you been so early?”

Walking into the kitchen and putting the kettle on, Niall sent Zayn an amused look over his shoulder.

“It’s almost noon, Zaynie.”

“That’s what I said. Too early for a Sunday,” Zayn shrugged, fixing his grip on the duvet.

“Just went to the store, cause we run out of sugar and…”

There was something calming in watching Niall pottering around the small kitchen and talking about some random stuff. Zayn wasn’t really focusing on them, his brain still a bit too sleepy to process all those informations. And Niall’s warm voice wasn’t really helping for his drowsiness. Propping his elbow on the table, Zayn rested his face on it and watched Niall opening and closing the cupboards, taking out groceries and fixing the tea.

It was nice to have Niall around, Zayn thought. That loud, cheerful Irishman had appeared in Zayn’s life about 3 years ago and hadn’t left it ever since. Not that Zayn wanted him to. They’ve met in their first year of university, both came to London from significantly smaller towns, both much more stressed and anxious than they were willing to admit. It appeared to be a great thing to bond over. Quite quickly, it turned into a great friendship. At first glance they seemed to be the exact opposites, but Zayn guessed this was exactly what made them go along so nicely. They were complementing each other. After their first year at university and Niall’s disastrous flatmate, they’ve decided to find an apartment together. And that was how they’d ended up in that small flat, on the first floor of Mrs. Jenkins terrace house. It was nice, their landlady was a very lovely, elderly woman, who had never complained about anything. From the very beginning, Niall had charmed her and now they were invited for dinner quite regularly. She was basically like their adoptive grandma. 

“It  _ is  _ still too early for ya, isn't it?” Niall mocked, ruffling Zayn’s hair.

Zayn wasn’t even sure when he had been approached. Instead of leaning back to run away from the hand in his hair, he let out a long, noncommittal sound and rested his forehead on Niall’s stomach.

“Go and get dressed, sleeping beauty,” Niall sighed, slightly pushing Zayn back. “But make it quick, I’ve made some yummy scrambled eggs and they’re gonna taste like shite when they get cold.”

Niall was probably trying to sound annoyed, but when Zayn glanced up at him, his eyes were warm and his smile was still on its place. Zayn smiled back and slipped of the chair, toddling towards his room.

It really was nice to have Niall around.


	2. on the second day of christmas my true love sent to me... a mug of cocoa

“That fucking snow,” Zayn whined, entering the warm apartment. “I'm so done with the weather.”

“That escalated quickly,” Niall chuckled, raising an eyebrow at Zayn. “You were quite excited about it yesterday.”

Shrugging off his coat, Zayn threw it on the back of the armchair. His whole body seemed to be a huge icicle and he was expecting himself to start dripping on the floor in a few minutes.

“It's nice and pretty when I could watch it from my warm and cosy flat. Not when I had to wait for almost an hour at the bloody bus station, because everything is fucking delayed by, like, two months.”

From his spot on the couch, Niall was watching him with an amused expression. Bastard had been sitting here in the warmness and he still dared to laugh at Zayn misery. Besides, Zayn thought, Niall was always warm, the sunshine he was. It was ridiculous and slightly unfair, because even looking at Niall in a pair of shorts and a thin tee made Zayn shiver even more. 

“Here,” Niall said as he got up and shoved a blanket into Zayn's arms. Not waiting for a reaction, he wandered to the kitchen. “I'll make us cocoa. Was craving some myself anyway.”

“You're the best, Niall!” Zayn yelled after him, curling under the blanket on the couch.

When his fingers had warmed enough so he could move them properly, Zayn took his phone out the pocket of his hoodie. To be honest, it seemed to be one of Niall's, but Zayn didn't dwell too much on it. It wasn’t his fault that their clothes get so mixed up during all those years of living together. And Niall’s clothes were softer and warmer, somehow, so Zayn couldn’t help to snuck a hoodie or two from him.

Unlocking his mobile, Zayn saw that he had one new text from his mum. He let out a low growl, knowing what he'd find written there. His mum was one of the most important people in his life and Zayn loved her a whole lot, but she could be very… persistent. And she wasn’t even being subtle about it. 

“What happened?” Niall asked after hearing Zayn's groan. With a mug in each hand, Niall was back to the living room.

“It's just…,”Zahn sighed, reading the text and putting the phone aside. He run a hand through his hair and then looked up at Niall, making grabby hands at the mug. 

“Just what?” Niall playfully moved the mug out of Zayn's reach, smiling widely.

The warm beverage was handed to him anyway and Zayn gladly wrapped his hands around it. He looked inside the cup, smiling at the generous portion of whipped cream on top of it and he smelled the sweet scent. 

“It's just my mum,” he answered eventually. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Niall cocking his head to the side to look at him. 

“What's up with my favourite Malik?” Niall asked cheerfully.

Turning his head to face Niall, Zayn sent him a glare that hopefully looked offended and annoyed at the same time. It probably didn't, though, because Niall only smiled wider.

“She's not even my fave Malik at the moment. She keeps bugging me about that Christmas party she always organises.”

“And that's bad because…,” Niall questioned with a raised eyebrow. “You don't wanna go?”

“Well… the more distant family might be a bit too much sometimes, but… No, I do want to go. It's just…,” Zayn took a sip from his mug, getting some of the cream on his nose. Wiping it with the back of his hand, he continued, “She just keeps asking me if I'm seeing someone and that she worries about me and that if I do see someone, I should totally tell her or - even better - bring that someone to the party.”

Niall let out an noncommittal sound, looking like he still wasn't sure what the problem was.

“But you're not seeing anyone, are you?” he asked, watching Zayn closely. After getting a negative answer, he shrugged, “So tell her that.”

“But she'll be disappointed and will send me those looks and ask if I'm alright and all that shit. I know she's not doing it to annoy me and she's just concerned. Or at least i hope she is. But it's quite annoying when she does that. It’s like ‘it’s cool you’re not seeing anyone, but I’m gonna be low-key sad if not and also I’m gonna keep asking, to remind you how lonely you are’”

“Oh god, no. Not the looks!” Niall gasped with a laugh. Zayn only send him an unamused stare. “No, I’m serious!” Niall added after that, “Me mum does those, too. Like the ones that make you question your life and dwell on how much of a disappointment to the family you are for not being in a stable relationship even though you don't really need it at 22? The ones that say ‘I support you, but you could just find someone’?”

“Exactly those,” Zayn cackled at that - weirdly accurate - description. 

Trying to pull a serious face, Niall stroked his chin and glanced at the ceiling. It made Zayn laugh even more, which was probably the opposite reaction to the one Niall was aiming for. 

“That's a tough one. What are you going to do?” Niall asked, looking back at Zayn. 

“Pretend I'm dead? Or kidnap somebody and offer them a huge amount of money for pretending to be my date? Except I don't have any money, leave alone a huge amount of it?”

For a few moments, Niall hadn't said anything. Instead, he was thoughtfully scanning Zayn's face. Not knowing what it was about, Zayn opened his mouth to ask if anything was alright. Before he could do that, Niall's lips curled into a - slightly mischievous - smile. 

“Or you can just find someone who already likes your family and will be fine with your mum's cooking as a payment,” Niall suggested. 

Furrowing his brows, Zayn looked at Niall as if he was crazy. He laughed at the Irishman's words. 

“You're the only one who'd ever agree for such deal, I don't know how it is supposed to help me.”

Not saying a word, Niall just raised his brows, looking at Zayn expectantly.

It took awhile for Zayn's brain to catch up with what his friends was talking about. It wasn't Zayn's fault, though. It wasn't his fault that Niall was being absolutely ridiculous.

“You want me to-” Zayn started, dumbfounded. “As if we-” he waved his hand vaguely between the two of them. Hearing a proud “u-huh!” coming from Niall’s mouth, Zayn couldn't help but laugh at him. “There's no way it will work, mate.”

“Why? Am I not handsome enough?” Niall pouted.

“No, you are. I mean-,” Zayn blushed a little, realising what he’d said. Hoping Niall hadn’t noticed anything, he continued. “I mean my mum knows we’re just friends.”

“Well she does. But you’ve also said that she once thought we were dating.” Niall pointed out.

Zayn must admit he was right. After the very first time Zayn mentioned Niall, his mum was very quick to assume there had been something more going on. It get even worse after Zayn brought Niall home for the first time, maybe two months after they’ve met. Zayn had had a very long, very frustrating talk with his mum, during which he tried his hardest to convince her he hadn’t been hiding anything from her.

“Yeah, but it was three years ago. I think we’ve convinced her there’s nothing like that between us?” Zayn said, scratching at the back of his neck  and glancing at his mug instead of at Niall.

“Never heard of friends who developed feelings for each other? Those things take time, Zayn,” Niall deadpanned, sending him a look.

Zayn chuckled and looked at Niall. For a few seconds he had a very serious look on his face, but then he started to waggle his eyebrows suggestively, making Zayn laugh even harder.

“You really think that might work?” Zayn asked hesitantly.

“Of course it might work! The Maliks would be too delighted just by the thought of having me in the family to analyse it!” Niall said excitedly, but then he added, “It’s your decision, but we can do it if you want. We’ll pretend we’re dating and then tell them we decided we’re better off as friends.”

Looking at Niall thoughtfully, Zayn considered it for a moment. There was a slight chance it might work, but it sounded absolutely crazy. His mum would probably see through them straight away and Zayn wasn’t sure how she would react to this. The whole idea was simply crazy.

“Ok, let’s do that,” Zayn said, looking into Niall’s eyes that were sparkling mischievously.

Maybe it wouldn’t be  _ that  _ hard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> surprise surprise! what an unexpected an original trope! i'm not even sorry tbh  
> hopefully i haven't missed any mistakes but i've probably did so sorry 'bout them, they're all my fault :p


	3. on the third day of christmas my true love sent to me... a trip to the christmas market

“C’mon, don't be like that!”

With a growl, Zayn tried to pull his duvet over his head. Before he could do that, said duvet was forcefully - and very cruelly, if you'd ask Zayn - pulled off him. 

“I told you I don't wanna move, leave me alone,” Zayn whined. 

The heavy - although warmer than his lost blankets - body laying down on him was what he'd gotten in exchange.

“You can't fucking go to sleep, it's barely past 7, move that bony arse of yours,” Niall digged his chin into Zayn's shoulder. “If you don't go, I won't let you sleep anyway, you know that?”

“Why do you even want to go there? I don't understand that whole excitement,” Zayn mumbled, trying to get more comfortable under Niall. 

“We've been living in that city for over 3 years now and not even once went to see any of the Christmas Markets, Zayn. I'm disappointed in us, Zayn.”

Zayn hummed in acknowledgement, not even bothering to open his eyes. Maybe if he'd pretend he died, Niall would leave him alone. His hope didn’t last for too long, though, because Niall slid his arms under Zayn's body and started tickling him in the ribs. Zayn tried to squirm away from those traitorous hands but it was quite hard since he was still being pressed into the mattress.

“I’m not disappointed in us. Can I stay now?” Zayn managed to turn around under Niall, so he could grab his friend’s wrists.

Instead of giving him an answer, Niall shook his head with a grin. When it didn't make Zayn react in any way, he pouted. His big, blue eyes were staring right at Zayn, and the latter already knew he’d lost.

“Please?” Niall said. “I won't ask you for anything else for a month!”

Zayn raised an eyebrow at him, “We both know that's bullshit, Ni.”

“Ok, maybe. But please, it will be fun, promise! I'll buy you some hot chocolate, what do you say?”

“Fine, I'll go,” Zayn sighed heavily. “But I'm doing it only for the hot chocolate.”

That was how Zayn ended up outside on a chilly, December morning. Niall was literally jumping up and down on his side, talking excitedly about the things they were going to see and the things he wanted to eat. He also told a story about how he once went to a Christmas Market with his parents when he was little and convinced them to go ice skating. It had turned out to be a horrible idea, because there was more falling than skating and his knee was hurting for a week.

“So I guess you don’t want to go there?” Zayn pointed at the big ice rink, situated in front of the entrance to the Market.

“I think I’ll pass, thank you,” Niall laughed. “I can imagine how sad you are knowing that you won’t see my best moves today.”

“I’m devastated,” Zayn tried to keep a straight face, but his smile probably betrayed him.

It was the middle of the week, but the area was still pretty crowded. Zayn could feel Niall shifting closer to him as they’d passed the gate. The Market looked lovely, Zayn had to admit. Wide aisles of booths with variety of Christmas goodies were illuminated by long garlands of fairy lights. In the centre of the square there was a big Tree with a huge, golden star on top of it and Christmas songs were coming from the speakers placed on the streetlights. Sweet smell of cinnamon and pine tree was floating in the air. Zayn smiled and then turned his head to look at Niall. He had to bit his lip to stop his smile from growing.

Niall was looking around with childlike awe, his eyes were sparkling in the shimmery light that surrounded them. A big, grey scarf, that Zayn had personally wrapped around the Irishman’s neck before they’d left was covering almost half of Niall’s face. And yet, Zayn still could see his pink cheeks and his lips curling into a smile. There were some snowflakes caught in his hair, since the snow had started to slowly fall a while ago. Zayn felt something warm inside him, despite the low temperature around.

“Where do you want to go first?” he asked, having to clear his throat, because his voice sounded raspy.

Looking a bit distracted, Niall tore his eyes from the three he was looking at and turned to Zayn. Niall tugged at his scarf, so he could talk freely and said, “Don’t really have a plan, we can just wander around the aisles for a while?”

Zayn only nodded and send Niall a smile, turning around so they could do just that. Before they’d started walking again, Zayn felt Niall’s arm sneaking under his own and a gloved hand squeezed at his bicep. Zayn glanced down and his arm and then at Niall, but the latter wasn’t looking at him, already pointing at some things in the nearby booth. 

 

After over an hour of going from one stand to another, Zayn had bought some sweets for his sisters and a handmade mug for his mum. Niall was proudly wearing a pair of earmuffs that had reindeer antlers attached to them and he’d bought some nice tea for his mum and a reindeer plushie for his godson Theo.

“Still regretting coming here?” Niall asked, nudging Zayn with his elbow.

They were sitting on a bench and sipping on the huge cups of hot chocolate Niall had bought for both of them, just like he promised earlier.

“Well… I’ve got my chocolate, I’m fine now,” Zayn chuckled, raising his cup.

“You’re a cheap date,” Niall shook his head with a laugh. Before Zayn could react, Niall let out a happy sound and pointed at something in front of them. “Look, there’s a Ferris wheel over there! We should totally go for a ride!”

“You’re crazy, Niall.It’s cold as fuck and it’s also dark already,” Zayn answered, looking at Niall disbelievingly.

“Oh come on! Don’t be such a Grinch and lemme enjoy festive entertainments, will ya?”

With a sigh, Zayn thought that he really should learn how to say no to Niall.


	4. on the fourth day of christmas my true love sent to me... a ride on the ferris wheel

The huge wheel started moving, letting out a quiet scrape in the process. Zayn leaned out just a bit, looking at the construction a bit doubtfully. 

“It's cold, why are we here?” Zayn whined, looking back at Niall. 

Shifting a bit closer to the Irishman, Zayn put his cold hands between his tights, trying to warm them up a bit.

“Because we both want to see the pretty cityscape in the night and we both are enjoying this,” Niall answered with a smile. 

“If you say so,” Zayn shook his head. “The next time, I'm not gonna listen to you, I'll stay at home and watch movies.”

“We can do that when we get home. If you won't fall asleep straight away.” Niall laughed, poking at Zayn's cold cheek. 

In response, Zayn nudged him with his arm quite forcefully. He quickly regretted it, because their gondola swayed slightly. With a quiet yelp, Zayn gripped Niall's arm and looked at the construction again. 

“Chill, Zaynie, those things are safe,” Niall chuckled at Zayn's obvious dismay. “Don't have to worry.”

“I don't worry,” Zayn mumbled, tearing his eyes from the pipe that held their gondola and looked at Niall.

Niall was already looking back and when he'd met Zayn's gaze, a smile appeared on his face. It was almost dark, the only source of light were the illuminations on the middle of the Ferris wheel. The darker spots on Niall's cheeks, caused by the cold were still visible on his face and Zayn found himself grinning at that. Even when Niall turned his head to look around, Zayn still couldn't look away from his friend's face. It calmed him, somehow. It wasn't like Zayn was afraid of the heights, he was just feeling a bit nervous when he couldn't see the ground beneath him properly. 

Only when Niall started to talk about the things that were visible from here and shook Zayn out of his thoughts, the latter managed to look around. 

They weren't very high, but they were still higher than most buildings nearby. Zayn could see the London Eye and the Big Ben standing out against the dark sky.

“I wonder if we could see our flat from here,” Niall said, shifting on his sit so he could look at the other side. 

“Don't squirm so much!” Zayn warned, putting his hand on Niall's side when the latter managed to sit sideways.

“You're worried about me or about the possibility of the gondola falling down?” Niall teased, raising an eyebrow.

“Of course I worry about the gondola,” Zayn answered. However, the hand he had on Niall’s waist tightened its grip.

As soon as he said that, their pod swayed sharply, making even Niall grope at the back rail of their seat.

“What happened?” Zayn asked, trying not to sound panicked.

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s supposed to be like this. To let us enjoy the view from the top for a bit?” Niall shrugged, looking down.

Deciding to believe him, Zayn was trying to convince himself that they weren’t stuck and that Niall was right. It was a bit weird, since they should had been stopping more often, so each pod could stay at the top for a little bit longer. But ok, maybe he just wasn’t paying attention before. He could bear half a minute more in here.

Except they were here for almost two minutes now and Zayn was quite positive that they had gotten stuck.

“Niall?”

“Hm?” Irishman looked at Zayn innocently.

“You still think that’s a totally normal break?” Zayn asked.

“Well…,” Niall said, before he started laughing. “Ok, we might’ve gotten stuck. But look at the bright sides! You can enjoy the nice view, you have a splendid company, it’s not raining at least…”

There was some truth in what Niall was saying, however Zayn was freezing his butt off and also the snow started to fall more densely now. But of course. It could be worse. Seeing the white fluff swirling in the wind around them in heavy, big snowflakes, Niall started to laugh even harder. 

“That's why we shouldn't make any of your stupid ideas real, Horan!” Zayn growled. 

“I'm dreaming of the white Christmas,” Niall started to sing in a low voice, completely ignoring Zayn's words. 

“Shut up,” Zayn said.

“Just like the ones I used to know,” Niall sung even louder with poorly contained laughter.

“Seriously, Niall. What is wrong with you, we're stuc-”

The rest of Zayn's words were drawn out by Niall who was basically screaming the lyrics now, “with the treetops glisten and children listen to hear the sleigh bells in the snow.”

Not having anything better to do, Zayn started laughing, completely dumbfounded by his friend's reaction. Niall was probably the only person to yell Christmas songs while being stuck on top of the ferris wheel, seeming to be completely happy with the situation. Niall was ridiculous. 

“You're mad,” Zayn said with a laugh, when Niall finished his song.

Just as he said that, the gondola swayed unexpectedly like the first time. Zayn's face dropped and he grope Niall's thigh. Looking at his friend with wide eyes, he found the latter still smiling. The pod swayed again, more gently this time and they'd slowly started to move again. 

“See? I've sung a song and it's all good now! My ideas are amazing!” Niall yelled with a proud grin on his face. 

“You're so fucking stupid, Horan,” Zayn shook his head, looking fondly at his friend. Luckily, he wasn't able to see it in the dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not really happy about that one, sorry. I should've thought this whole idea through better.


	5. on the fifth day of christmas my true love sent to me... a cold

Zayn should had expected it. He should got used to it by now. And yet, when he woke up the day after their trip to the Christmas Market with a sore throat and runny nose, he was surprised. Who would have thought that two hours of wandering in the cold without a hat and getting stuck at the Ferris wheel would bring consequences. Not Zayn, apparently.

Rolling out of his bed with a low groan, Zayn pulled on a hoodie and dragging his duvet behind him, Zayn toiled to the kitchen. He put the kettle on and made his way to the couch, throwing himself at it with another groan. All those rapid movements had gave Zayn a cough attack and he needed to roll onto his back so he didn’t suffocate.

The noises he was making might was the cause of Niall walking into the room a few moments later. With ruffled hair and squinted eyes he looked around the room. When he’d spotted Zayn sprawled on the couch with his duvet lain loosely over him, Niall raised an eyebrow at that.

“What happened?” Niall asked, his voice a bit raspy from sleep.

Zayn let out another miserable whine instead of answering properly. Kicking at his duvet to make it cover him properly, Zayn curled into a ball and glared at his friend.

“You OK?” Niall asked again, with a hint of laughter in his voice.

“Fuck you,” Zayn croaked and tried to clear his throat but it turned out to be too painful. “It’s all your fault. You and your stupid ideas.”

“You’re sick?”

The amusement in Niall’s face quickly turned into concern as he walked towards Zayn. Crouching next to the couch, Niall put his hand on Zayn’s forehead. Closing his eyes, Zayn felt his friend’s fingers running through his fringe. His groggy brain didn’t react to this in any way.

“Nah, I’m just coughing for fun,” Zayn mumbled, leaning into Niall’s touch. His warm palm slid to Zayn’s cheek and rested there for a second or two.

“OK, I have no idea if you’re having a fever or no, but me mum always does this. I’m gonna try to find the thermometer and check if we have any meds,” Niall said, getting up. “And I’m gonna make you some tea.”

An agreeing hum was the only thing that escaped Zayn’s mouth, before he drifted back to sleep.

The next time Zayn had woken up was to someone shaking his arm gently. Blinking his eyes open, Zayn tried to focus on the person who was hovering over him. After a few long seconds, he realised it was Niall, which was quite logical.

“Sorry for waking you up, Sleeping Beauty. I have tea and also some soup? You should eat something,” Niall said.

“Soup? You made soup?” Zayn asked suspiciously, but despite his tone, he made an effort to put his achy body into a seated position.

Niall only cackled at that, scratching his neck in a self-conscious gesture. “You crazy? Regardless of what you might think, I don’t want to poison you. Miss Jenkins made it. It’s safe.”

“We’d die without that woman,” Zayn sighed, looking at the bowl Niall was handing him.

His hands were shaking when he tried to steady the plate on his lap and he almost spilled the soup all over himself.

Still standing next to him, Niall laughed, watching Zayn’s efforts, “You need help with this?”

“You need help shutting up?” Zayn bite back, not even looking at his friends.

“Look at you being bitchy, I guess you’re feeling better!” Niall said with a grin, before wandering off towards the kitchen. “I also have wine. I’ve heard that mulled wine is the best cure for a cold.”

“You can’t cure everything with alcohol, Horan,” Zayn yelled after him, as loud as his sore throat let him before taking a spoonful of the lovely smelling soup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm sorry it's so short and nothing really happens here. just wanted to post it so i won't have another wasted day :c i've started the sixth one so if i'm lucky i'm gonna post it today as well and if i'm not... well, then i'm not gonna do that :D


	6. on the sixth day of christmas my true love sent to me... some mulled wine

“This is your remedy?”

Zayn raised an eyebrow, watching Niall from his spot on the couch. His friend was trying to plug his laptop into their old telly and there were two big, steaming mugs of mulled wine on the table. Sitting cross-legged on the couch with a blanket over his arms, Zayn didn't really feel like helping his friend. Besides, he was really rubbish with technology.

“You won't convince me you don't like my plan, “ Niall mumbled, staring at his laptop's screen.

“Well, we both know how they usually end, so…” Zayn said with a smile.

Trying to find a pack of tissues somewhere under his blanket, he didn't notice Niall plonking on the couch next to him. He'd drawn Zayn's attention only when he threw a new pack of tissues at him. Maybe Zayn would even thank him, if there wasn't any throwing included.

“There's nothing that can go wrong in a movie night, Zaynie, don't exaggerate.” Niall said.

He leaned towards the table to pick up the mugs. As soon as Zayn had a grip on his own, Niall knocked their cups together with a grin and a loud “cheers!”. With a smile, Zayn shook his head in amusement, raising his mug like he was making a silent toast and then took a sip.

The warm, sweet wine left the rich taste of spices on his tongue and a hot feeling down his throat, when he swallowed. Maybe that idea of Niall's wasn't the worst.

Zayn laughed when he’d realised that Niall had turned on “ _Love Actually_ ”. Both of them had seen this movie countless times and yet they watched it every year at least two times.

“I feel it in my fingers,” Niall yelled, throwing his arm across Zayn’s shoulders, “I feel it in my toes!”

“It hasn’t even started properly and you’re so hyped already,” Zayn chuckled, sending Niall a quick look and taking another sip of his wine.

“Love is all around me! And so the feeling grows!” Niall sung happily, completely ignoring his friend’s words.

It was always hard to stop him from whooping his favourite songs’ lyrics. Zayn should just stop trying. At least he had an amazing voice, so it was quite enjoyable listening to Niall and it would be even better if he sung a bit quieter or a bit further away from Zayn’s ear.

Two cups of wine and half of the movie later, Zayn felt like he might be a bit drunk. When he let himself be dragged off the couch by Niall to do a weird dance to “ _Jump For My Love”_ that included a lot of shimmying, he was almost hundred percent sure that he was drunk. But at least his throat wasn’t sore anymore, breathing through his nose was was a bit easier and Niall’s body was warm and soft when he cuddled close to his side. Zayn wondered if his friend was equally drunk. Probably not. He was always proudly talking about his Irish heritage that let him consume more alcohol than normal people did. However, Niall’s eyes seemed to be a bit glazed when he looked at Zayn. Or maybe it was just Zayn’s vision that was blurred, he wasn’t sure.

Nevertheless, Zayn was happy and content, spending his evening like this. When Niall started to absentmindedly play with the hair at the nape of Zayn’s neck, the latter sighed happily, hiding his face in Niall’s chest.

He had a very nice smelling friend, Zayn thought, breathing in Niall’s scent.

“You’re not falling asleep, are ya?” Niall said, not moving his hand for what Zayn was very thankful.

“‘M not,” Zayn mumbled. 

However, his closed eyes might mislead Niall a bit, because he asked again, “You want to go to bed?”

Zayn shook his head and wrapped his arms around Niall’s slim waist. “You warm,” he said as an answer.

“You’re like a cat. Just slightly bigger and drunk, but still a cat,” Niall laughed. “All you need is a bit of food, cuddles and warmness and you’re all happy and content.”

“I also need you,” Zayn pointed out, sleepily. “You give me cuddles and warmness and also your fajitas are nice.”

“You are nice,” Niall answered with a laugh. “But not nice enough to make me carry you to your bed, I’m gonna let you sleep on the couch.”

Zayn let out a quiet hum, slowly drifting away to sleep.

Later, when he’d woken up for a moment, Niall was laying him on his own bed and then placed a short kiss on Zayn’s forehead.

“Nighty-night, Sleeping Beauty,” Niall said, walking towards the door.

“G’night, Niall,” Zayn mumbled.

He had to admit that Niall’s remedy for a cold wasn’t all that bad and turned out to be quite effective. Maybe not all his ideas were bad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I HAVE A MINUTE TILL MIDNIGHT SORRY FOR THE MISTAKES!  
> lmao sorry but i wanted to post it today :D


	7. on the seventh day of christmas my true love sent to me... gifts for my family

Leaning against the wall in their short hall, Zayn was watching Niall with his eyebrows raised in a disapproving gesture. 

“How many times do I have to repeat ‘it's not necessary’ for you to understand?” he asked. 

“And how many times do I have to say ‘shut up’ for you to just let it go and come with me?” Niall tried to sound annoyed but his laugh was betraying him. “I need presents for the in-laws. They've invited me so it would be impolite to go empty-handed.”

Zayn scrunched his eyebrows at that, however he took his coat that Niall has handed him. 

“Well… technically they didn't invite you, sorry. In fact, they'll be extremely surprised when they see you.”

“They'll be delighted. Trisha will be over the moon that you've came to your senses and started dating me,” Niall said, sending Zayn a serious look and held the door for him. 

“You're insane,” Zayn only mumbled, tying a scarf around his neck and stepped outside. 

Zayn tried not to wonder too much about what would his mum say after seeing Niall with him. The first possibility - the one that was going to happen, Zayn was sure about it - was that she would see right through their lie and be disappointed that Zayn preferred to come up with something like this instead of saying the truth. 

The other possibility was that she might really be happy to see Niall. Happy enough to believe that he was Zayn's boyfriend. Since their first encounter, Trisha absolutely adored Niall. His whole family did. There was that thing about Niall - or a lot of things, actually - that made people fall in love with him so easily. Zayn's mum wasn't able to resist it. Whenever she and Zayn had talked, Trisha was always asking about Niall and Zayn was convinced that the two of them had a few phone calls even without his involvement. It was a bit scary how well did they get along.

The bad thing about the second scenario was that his family would be kind of heartbroken to learn that his relationship with Niall was completely made up and that they're not together. Zayn wasn't sure which possibility scared him more and made him want to abandon this insane idea.

“You OK?”

Zayn shook his head and looked at Niall who was watching him as carefully as walking down the slightly crowded street let him.

“Um. Yeah, sorry. Just zoned out a bit,” he sent his friend a small smile.

“Fair enough,” Niall said. “Was worried that you're still not feeling well or something.”

Zayn snorted at that, and looked at his friend with raised eyebrows, “Niall, I've only had a cold. Nothing death-dealing, ya know?”

“And yet, I had to carry your heavy ass to the bed,” Niall grinned, bumping their shoulders together. Zayn's smile quickly turned into an unamused expression that only made Niall laugh harder. The latter's right hand, protected from the cold by a fluffy mitten, squeezed at Zayn's arm, just above his elbow. It felt a bit like a dejavu, Zayn thought, remembering their trip to the Christmas Market a few days ago. Had Niall always been so cuddly and clingy but Zayn was just paying attention to it? That sounded quite possible. When he thought about it, a lot of their behaviours seemed unusual to others and Zayn was realising those only after someone pointed it out.

“I was thinking about some coffee beans for your dad?” Niall said as they'd entered the shopping centre. “He'd gotten that fancy coffee machine for his birthday, right?”

“Yeah, he did,” Zayn nodded, smiling at Niall. “He never says no to a nice coffee.”

Niall nodded, looking around and scanning the nearby shops. “Not sure about your mum, though,” he added absentmindedly, before he pulled at Zayn's arm to make the latter follow him. 

Squeezed between the newsagent’s and the wholefood shop, there was a tiny café that Niall dragged them into. Zayn had no memories of being here before. Greeting the salesman with a smile, Niall walked towards the shelves, filled with jars and tins of coffee beans and ground coffee. A bit overwhelmed, Niall gaped at the immensity of coffee, his eyes wandered through the racks before he turned to Zayn. 

“I’m a bit confused,” Niall said and then he landed towards Zayn and whispered conspiratorially, “I don't know shit about coffee, to be honest.”

Zayn snorted, looking at his friend with amusement, “Unfortunately, I won't be much help.”

“Well, that might be a problem,” Niall said but despite his words, a grin appeared on his face.

He shifted closer to the wall, squinting at the labels attached to the jars. After reading some parts out loud, Niall kept sending Zayn glances, as if Zayn had any idea what did they mean. Finding anything good that way would probably take ages. Luckily, the girl that worked there, eventually approached them with a small smile. Even though they weren't the easiest clients since they didn't know about the differences about various coffee types and weren't even sure which one Zayn's dad preferred, she was still able to help them.

“Lets hope I won't be kicked out after giving your dad this,” Niall said, grinning over his shoulder at Zayn. 

The cashier smiled at that, taking the bill Niall handed her and said, “I bet your father-in-law will be happy about the gift .”

“It's not rea-” Zayn started but was interrupted by Niall before he let out a whole sentence.

“I hope so. Don't want to be disapproved by the boyfriend's fam, you know?” Niall winked at the girl, taking the neatly pack of coffee from her.

Slightly confused, Zayn watched as Niall reached to grip his arm again and with a small wave and a cheerful “happy holidays!” to the cashier, he navigated Zayn out of the store. 

“Wha-,” Zayn started, glancing at Niall. “What was that? You know that we don't have to pretend in front of everyone else, right?”

Niall only shrugged at that, “sorry. Haven't really thought about it.”

Sending his friend another look, Zayn decided to drop the topic. There wasn't anything to talk about anyway. It just surprised him a bit that it was so easy for Niall to pretend they were dating. 

“For your mum I was thinking about some gift basket with sweets?” Niall picked up the previous topic. “With, like, those strawberry candies she loves? And those white fancy chocolates?”

“She'll love that but she'll complain that you'd make her fat,” Zayn laughed.

“Well, she always tries to do that to me every time she sees me, so I guess it will be only fair!” Niall pointed out and made his way to the candy store, not letting go of Zayn's arm. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ofc i haven't finished before Christmas but let's keep the festive atmosphere for a little longer, shall we?  
> also - have a wonderful NYE and may all your dreams come true in 2018 <3


	8. on the eighth day of christmas my true love sent to me... a duet

This whole thing was messing with Zayn's head. Laying on the couch in their tiny living room, he was staring at the ceiling, hoping it'd give him an answer to why had he agreed to this farce. He should had listened to his gut and just throw this idea aside as soon as it popped up. 

If it wasn't for Niall, Zayn would never agree to this. If it wasn't for Niall, Zayn would never pretend played a relationship with his best friend. If it wasn't for Niall, Zayn would never start thinking about how it would feel to be with Niall for real. Niall was the only one to blame for everything. All of sudden Zayn became hyper-aware of all the little - and not so little - things Niall did, of his gestures and touches, of his smiles and looks. Maybe he noticed them before, Zayn didn't decline that. But now he was catching himself on trying to see more into them, on analysing if they could mean anything. And it most definitely wasn't a thing he should had been doing.

Zayn was quite happy Niall wasn’t home at the moment. It had become harder for him to focus when his best friend was around. Which was very far from how their friendship usually worked and that freaked Zayn out even more. So he was thankful for some alone time to clear his head.

There was one, very possible - and quite sad - explanation for Zayn's confusion. It had been a while since his last relationship and he might had been a bit more desperate than he was willing to admit earlier. And since his relation with Niall was probably the warmest and strongest he'd ever had, that longing feeling made an appearance. But Zayn was longing for a relationship, not for Niall himself. Their plan of fooling Zayn's mum just kick-started it and maybe fooled Zayn's own feelings a bit as well. He wasn't crushing on his best friend, that would be stupid. Even Zayn wasn't stupid enough to do this.

The only thing Zayn had to do now, was to remember that thing he felt was as fake as the relationship they had.

He could do this.

 

Not too long after, Zayn heard the door downstairs creak open, followed by Niall's muffled voice as his friend was having a conversation with Miss Jenkins. About a minute later, Niall entered their flat, humming something under his breath.

“Oh, you're up?” Niall asked, spotting Zayn on the couch. 

“It's two o'clock, Niall” Zayn pointed out. 

“That's why I'm asking. It's also holiday break. You woke up at 4 yesterday.”

Zayn only sent him a glare that Niall obviously just laughed at and then disappeared in his room. 

Before Zayn managed to even roll out of the couch, Niall was back, already changed in a pair of sweats and a shirt that said “cool kids don't dance”. The fact that it was slightly stretching across his shoulders only convinced Zayn that it was his own t-shirt, that he lost about a month ago. He really get used to it by now. It was just unfair that Niall’s shoulders were broad enough to stretch his clothes. 

Quietly singing  _ Santa Claus is Coming to Town _ and doing something on his phone, Niall went to the kitchen. Not having anything else to do, Zayn followed him. 

“There are other Christmas songs, you know that, right?” Zayn teased when he heard that Niall was playing Michael Bublé again.

“Hush, Zayn. This is art, this is the spirit of Christmas,” Niall answered with a serious look on his face. 

Zayn held his hands up in surrender, not going to argue with his friend about that because it was already a lost cause. Instead - after Niall assured him he didn't need any help - Zayn sat by the table and watched as the Irishman rummaged through the cupboards, probably wanting to cook something for lunch. He was making spaghetti, from what Zayn could tell.

Focusing on Niall's voice singing along to the Christmas tunes, Zayn really tried not to think about how domestic it all felt. They were living together for three years, so it was quite natural they had developed some sort of domesticity by now. But it was always like this, Zayn reminded himself. Nothing changed lately. Besides, about half an hour ago he promised himself to stop over analyzing Niall's behaviours. For once, he could keep his own promise. 

Shaking his head to get rid of those annoying thoughts, Zayn got up and took the cutting board from Niall. Despite his earlier words, Niall didn’t protest much after receiving some help. Chopping the tomatoes, Zayn listened with a smile to Niall's singing, eventually joining in, after Niall nudged him with his hip for god-knows-which time. They sang a duet of  _ Santa Baby _ and Zayn almost cried of laughter at the faces Niall was making. It was probably supposed to look seductive, but didn't, really.

 

When the pasta was bubbling happily in the pot and the scent of  sauce was filling the kitchen, Niall changed the tune that was playing and grabbed Zayn's hand. A bit confused at first, Zayn grinned when he heard first sounds of the song. 

“ _ I really can't stay _ ,” he sang. 

“ _ But baby, it's cold outside, _ ” Niall sang back, pulling Zayn closer by his arm.

Trying to slip out of Niall's embrace, Zayn answered with a laugh, “ _ I've got to go away. _ ”

Dancing around the kitchen, they sang together a whole song, giggling as they tripped over their own feet. At the end, Niall swirled Zayn around and dipped him, completely ignoring Zayn's - a bit unmanly - squealing and clinging to Niall's arms in fear of falling. Laughing, Niall pulled him back up and wrapped his arms around Zayn's waist.

Looking at Niall's rident face, at his sparkling eyes, now squinted by the force of his smile, at his rosy cheeks, Zayn thought that maybe he was stupid enough.

 

Maybe he did have a crush on his best friend. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry the quality is bad but i'm back at uni so technically i won't have much time to finish this but i'll try my best! only 4 parts to go!


	9. on the ninth day of christmas my true love sent to me... a shooting star

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is probably the longest one i've written lol. again - sorry it took me so long and also sorry for all mistakes and typos! hope you'll like it ;')

“Zayn.”

“Zayn, are you asleep?”

“C’mon Zayn, don't be like that.”

At first Zayn thought this noise was just an unpleasant dream he was having. But when it didn't stop and Zayn's hazy brain recognised it as Niall's voice, he knew it was his unpleasant friend who was trying to annoy him again. He even dared to come into his room and nudge his arm a few times. Finally, Zayn let out a growl and rolled onto his back, defeated. 

“What the fuck do you want, Niall?” he asked. 

“I have an idea.”

“No, fuck you. That sentence had never done any good. Please go to bed and leave me alone.” Zayn mumbled, trying to turn onto his side again.

Before he'd managed to do that, Niall wrapped his arms around Zayn, making it impossible for the latter to move. 

“Have you ever been sledding in the night? Had you ever done this since you were a kid?” Niall said. 

At this point Zayn wasn’t even sure whether he’d been still dreaming or not. He raised his head up a little to to sent Niall a disapproving glance. However his efforts were futile, since the room was almost completely dark.

“Go away, Niall,” Zayn said eventually, after realising that his glare hadn't been received. 

“Should've guessed that the sledding won't work,” Niall chuckled. “There's not even a slightest bit of spontaneity in you, Zayn.”

Managing to turn around, Zayn curled into Niall's side, hiding his face in the latter's thigh.

“Excuse me very much, there's plenty of that in me. But not when someone wakes me the fuck up,” Zayn answered. “What did you really want?”

“Why do you assume that sledding is not a good enough excuse?” Niall asked defensively and yelped when Zayn pinched his leg. Eventually, he added, “OK so... the Geminids are visible this month and they’re still pretty active today and I saw that the sky is nice and clear and I thought you'd come with me to watch?”

Niall's words were a bit too quick for Zayn to catch up and the fact that his friend's hand landed on his head, scratching his scalp lightly, made it even harder to focus. 

“The what are what?” he asked brilliantly. 

“Meteor shower, Zayn,” Niall explained with a sigh. “The falling stars, Zayn. You know those little spots you see on-”

“I know what that mean, wanker, just haven't caught it at first,” Zayn felt the urge to explain himself. “Do we have to go now?”

With a snort, Niall bounced his leg up a bit, jostling Zayn who was still laying with his head on Niall's thigh.

“Nah, we can wait till the morning, when you're well-rested and awake,” he mocked. “Please, do this for me.”

Pressing his head further into Niall’s tight, Zayn growled. There were maybe two or three people in the world who could get away with waking him up. Unfortunately, Niall was one of them. And even more unfortunately, Zayn still hadn’t learned how to say no to him.

“Couldn’t you find a passion that didn’t require waking up and going out at night?” Zayn asked eventually.

Niall didn’t comment on that, he just stood up, taking away Zayn’s makeshift pillow and announced happily, “Be ready in 10 minutes, I’ll be waiting in the kitchen!”

With that, he’d left the room, living the door open. Zayn sighed heavily, pressing his face into the mattress. He tried to be annoyed at his friend but to be honest, he couldn’t bring himself to do that. And this made him get annoyed at himself instead. 

Almost 20 minutes later, Zayn had finally stumbled into the kitchen. Pulling on a hoodie, he yawned and sent Niall a disapproving glance. His friend looked unnaturally awake and cheerful, already dressed up and sipping on his tea. 

“It's still warm, I've made it for you a few minutes ago,” Niall said, pointing his chin at the mug placed on Zayn's side of the table.

They’d drunk in silence, mostly caused by Zayn’s drowsiness. Then - hurried by Niall who was literally bouncing happily around - Zayn tucked himself with his warmest coat and a huge scarf, while Niall had just put on his jacket and those ridiculous earmuffs he’d bought at the Christmas Market. To Zayn’s great surprise, Niall really did wear them. Those antlers proudly sticking out from Niall’s head made Zayn forget for a moment, that he was supposed to be angry and grumpy. He snorted, hiding his smile in the scarf, before walking out from the flat.

It wasn’t even as freezing as Zayn thought it would be, but he knew he’s going to feel cold soon enough. Kicking his heels, Zayn was waiting for his friend to finally join him on the pavement in front of their house. 

A moment or two had passed before the antlers had appeared again and Niall followed soon after. With a huge grin on his face, he was trailing an old, wooden sledge.

“I-” Zayn started dumbfounded. Eventually he said with a laugh, “I didn’t think you were serious about this.”

“I’m always serious, Zayn,” Niall answered solemnly. “Hop in.”

Zayn didn’t have to be told twice. He straddled the sledge, trying to get as comfortable as the small surface let him. But before he even sat himself down properly, Niall tugged at the rope quite violently and started walking down the street.

“What are we watching tonight?” Zayn asked. When he didn’t get any answer, he said louder, trying to break through Niall’s earmuffs.

“The stars, Zayn,” Niall sent Zayn a grin over his shoulder.

“Oh, you don’t say?” Zayn said sarcastically. “What are the falling ones called?”

“Geminids. They’re parts of that one planetoid, Phaethon? It’s cool cause meteor showers usually originates from comets not things like this. Back then it was part of-”

Zayn smiled. He could only see Niall’s back from his spot on the sledge, but his friend’s eagerness was showing even through it. Zayn might had not understand what he was talking about, but he just loved listening to Niall’s voice when the Irishman got excited about things. Otherwise, Zayn wouldn’t even be bothered to ask.

After just a few moments later, they’d left their neighbourhood. A tiny hill was located just beyond the last buildings and that was where they’d stopped. Or rather, Niall stopped, pushed Zayn from the sledge and run up the hill to go downhill on the other side. All this while laughing loudly. Not having much choice, Zayn had gotten up and chased after his friend.

A good half an hour passed them on going up and down the small hill, laughing and playing like kids. Eventually, Niall sat on the sledge, patting the spot next to him. Readjusting his loosened scarf, Zayn plonked down on their makeshift bench. A smile was plastered to his face, no traces of his previous grumpiness visible.

Tearing his eyes away from Niall, he looked up at the sky. His friend was right - the sky was perfectly clear and the dark, winter night had bring out the stars. Trying to calm his breath after all the chasing, Zayn was watching the sky just above the horizon, just like Niall told him to do.

“I saw one!” Zayn yelled excitedly a bit later, raising his arm and pointing up. “Just right there! Did you see that, too?”

Niall giggled, sending Zayn a quick look. His eyes seemed to reflect all those tiny lights and Zayn’d lost the plot for a split second.

“Yeah, I saw it. Pretty amazing, yeah?” Niall answered with a soft smile.

“Did you make a wish?” Zayn asked with a hint of tease in his voice, nudging Niall with his arm.

“Maybe, but one can’t tell or the wish won’t come true, will it? ” Niall said. Not tearing his gaze from the sky, he added, “did you?”

Shaking his head, Zayn looked at his friend. From this close he could feel the warmness radiating from Niall, he was able to see darker spots that bloomed on his cheeks from cold and running, he could count the freckles on Niall’s nose, even in the relative darkness that surrounded them. Looking at his friend smiling softly at the night sky with those ridiculous earmuffs with reindeer antlers, Zayn wondered if he really needed any wish.

He also wondered how could he not notice earlier that he was falling for his best friend.


End file.
